Nathan Anderson’s ‘Deconstruction of a Symptom’ is a standout collection
Book by Buddha Press
Heyo, lovely people, and happy National Poetry Day (from outside the UK)! I’m not going to lie; I’m super excited about today’s review. And not just because I’ve recovered enough following my last post (or, at least, as much as I can expect to recover for something quite so haunting as that) but because on this fine Friday, I’m reviewing a book by someone I know! Happy October, lovely people, and allow me to share with you my thoughts on this beautiful poetry collection from a friend of mine, Nathan Anderson. But first!
What I’m Reading: The Silmarillion (J.R.R.R. Tolkien – HarperCollins) / milk and honey (Rupi Kaur – Andrews McMeel Publishing)
What I’m Watching: Vikings (History)
I haven’t known Nathan for an exceedingly long time. I met the published artist through one of my dearest friends – an artist and photographer in her own right, and an amazing one at that; you can find Chloe’s work right on this way, and I highly recommend you do, as she deserves all the acclaim. Alas, I am currently in quarantine following a medical trip interstate (I’m doing well, headache-free and living large while that lasts!). I finally sat down to read Nathan’s first published book, Deconstruction of a Symptom and oh boi, there be something here.
Poetry is a challenging domain to review, as it’s infinitely more subjective than literature could ever hope to be. So much of it is raw and oftentimes tethered down only by a single line of spider’s silk. It drinks from the mind in visceral, gasping gulps, and judging that for good or ill can only come from whatever emotive, innate response to the piece you may have had. Indeed, the greatest poem in the world could still find no home in a place or person simply because that emotive, innate response wasn’t there. That said, I found a great deal to love in these pieces.
The greatest strength of Deconstruction of a Symptom is best described in another of his published pieces, A Jaw Complete: simply, “Repeat Ad infinitum.” The mastery of repetition, of hammering the emotion again, again, into your mind is one of Nathan’s greatest strengths. The clearest example of this is in ‘Deconstruction of a Blemish’, with every line beginning with history. As a result of this hard repetition, there is a profound, practically primal energy simmering just beneath each word, colouring the world as you descend further down. Time and time again, that hammering, heavy weight presses in, and you’re left almost chanting the words.
That intensity, then, follows through to the symbolic, to the melancholy, to the beautiful. For a short time, for there are only eighteen poems to be had in this collection, that emotional weight basically keeps you stationed in one place for as long as it takes you to read it.
There are moments where certain word choices threaten to jar with the whole experience, moments where softer or simpler words would seem a more natural decision, but they are rare, scratched out by his ability to make every word of every line seem gruellingly hand-picked from a thousand other candidates. Rating this title 4/5 on Goodreads is one of the easiest choices I’ve made.
I enjoyed this immensely, and I quite quickly post-read followed up by reading all the poems available on his website, which was equally worthwhile. Standouts include Self-portrait as Dialogue, In a Sunroom – Swimming, and perhaps my favourite, At the Base of the Volcano. Poeting about nature is where my soul lingers most, and At the Base of the Volcano very much taps into that; ultimately, I’m grateful I have the opportunity to celebrate such great work on my blog!
If I had to summarise the work of Nathan’s I’ve read, I would name it ‘visceral, underlined by a barely-simmering intensity; every word, intricately chosen and carved from the soul.’
In other words? Nathan’s a cool dude who writes amazing poetry. Please do go pilfer through his work and experience it all for yourself. Better yet, you can purchase this debut collection, Deconstruction of a Symptom right here!
But that be all from me. This was not an Arthurian post, but as far as the films attached to that mythos, there’s only so much pain I can take, lovely people, with so few Green Knights comparatively in the world. I have a few characters in the mythos I really want to dissect, but they’re certainly taking their time to brew.
Until the next fortnightly Friday, lovely people, where I shall officially be a quarter-century old!
—Charis.
